Bowdenisms: So Much Yes

I posted a photo to instagram the other day using the caption "so much yes in this photo"...

So much YES in this photo. #thebowdensisters

A photo posted by Courtney Bowden (@bowdenisms) on Dec 12, 2014 at 4:35pm PST

...I was just loving everything captured in that moment and didn't have words to sum it up better than YES.
But now looking back on our Christmas as a whole (not that it's over...please say it's not over!) and I'm feeling like "so much yes" is truly the motto for our entire holiday.

Matching jammies? Yes.
Candy before and after dinner? Yes.
Crazy late bedtime to make time for a special book and scattering of "reindeer food" on the lawn? Oh, YES.

Christmas is Yes. Yes to all of it, and then some more on top of that. More friends, more family. More treats. More books. More naps. More drinks. Even more drinks. More snuggles. More love More Jesus.

In general I am a more is more person, striving to come from "a place of yes" whenever I can. I was explaining my love (and collection) of ampersands to someone last week, and I said that basically I love the concept of AND. It's a principle of improv comedy, that you're always supposed to support your partner, going along with their idea, building on it with "yes, and". And while I'm not an improv comedian, I love that idea. Support each other...allow their dreams...build together...say YES when you can (which is probably a lot more often than I even think). It's worth noting perhaps, that I'm not an advocate of spoiled kids, drowning in presents, lacking any sense of boundaries or limits. But if there was ever a time to blur the edges of routine and rules in the name of memory making magic, then Christmas is it.

So much of toddlerhood is filled with NO. Many from me: "No you may not do that, or that, or that, or have that, or take that, or say that, or yell that..." And also so many from them- "No, no, nyee-OH, NO" all the live-long day. And there was still SO MUCH NO this holiday weekend, because even the powers of Santa and Baby Jesus combined can't overcome the will of our two little blonde furies (nor can they make up entirely for my occasional impatience and frustration despite my best efforts) But in spite of all the moments where I should have done better, or I wished they behaved better, our holiday was still marked with so much good, so much magic nestled in the ordinary, so much beauty of this incredible life we're given one little wild moment at a time. And as I look back on the last few days as a family, I'm so thankful for the yeses. Some were audible: "Please mama, can we?" "Yes!" And some were silent: Can you believe how lucky were are? How cute they are? How awesome this is? No, not at all...but also yessssssssss.

Here are a few snapshots from our pile of yes:

Santa came!! YESSSSS

Tiny hands, tiny presents:

Temporary tattoos on chubby forearms. Zebras wearing Santa hats. The way babies squat to do everything. These are a few of my unexpected favorite things.

Using new play-doh toys to "help" make cinnamon rolls

Cream cheese frosting is always yes

The neighbors are throwing away their old playhouse, would you like it? uh, Yes!

Let's plop the kids on the kitchen table so I can take 1,000 pictures...Yes?

No words. Just yes.

Wearing her new mittens + stealing her sister's new toy (met with the opposite of yes: "NO! That's my favorite new toy I got for my birf-day from Santa. I very like it. You cannot have it, FIN-NY!")